Li Desheng

Li Desheng (4 May 1916-8 May 2011) was a general of the People's Liberation Army of China during the Chinese Civil War and Korean War.

Biography
Li Desheng was born on 4 May 1916 in Guangshan County, Henan, China. In 1930 he joined the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army at the age of 14 and joined the Communist Party of China in 1932, taking part in the Long March alongside Mao Zedong. From 1943 to 1945 he served under Deng Xiaoping during World War II, fighting against the Empire of Japan when they occupied China. In the Korean War he led the Chinese 35th Infantry Division, and in 1955 he was promoted to Major-General after the war's end. During the Cultural Revolution, he became Chairman of the Revolutionary Committee and saw his authority decrease as Lin Biao and other generals were purged. In 1971 he took over the Beijing Military Region, and he resigned in 1975. He worked as a military instructor for several years afterwards, and he died in 2011.